Monday, August 31, 2009

I hatched out animals I didn't expect to get at all, I made a mistake about a clutch, and I had an adventure. Lets discuss the adventure first.

We spent Sunday with a lot of friends, and had a nice afternoon hanging out in Marina Del Ray. It was a beautiful and HOT weekend, and why not spend it cooler near the water?

So we went walking, and ran into a little concert on the pier. The elderly people really liked the big bang music, and they started dancing! Blue leggings was grooving! I was worried she was going to hurt herself, but she kept on trucking. You go, girl!

The water was beautiful...

We were tempted to take a boat out.

I heart Pelicans.

Hey look! A Crab!

Hibiscus in many shades

Later in the evening, we spent some time at Griffith Observatory taking photos of some friends for their engagement, as well as some of the area. I didn't take the pics, but I was there as moral support, as well as got some pictures taken as well. I will share some when I get them.

Anyway, these are the photos I took.

Wondering about the Fires? Yeah, they doubled in size last night. And we watched as it did.

I need to clean my lens.

And the Sunset...

Pretty, eh? Yeah, it was.

So Snake wise, I had some issues. I thought one of my Genetic Stripe females proved out, and I was super stoked!!! Problem is, what actually happened was that someone (more than likely me) switched the tub tops that had the ID of the clutch inside with another clutch that happened to have Pinstripes in it. In the egg and when you only see the back of the animal, Pinstripes kinda look like G Stripes. But... They came out of the egg, and I was sorely disappointed.

So again, my third poss het G Stripe female has yet to prove, but I did get some kicking Pinstripes!

And, my Normal to Enchi clutch hatched out with Plessers! I didn't expect the male to have bred with anything, but apparently... He was doing his job. I got two normals, two of what I think are Pastel Lessers, and an Enchi. I LOVE the Pastel Lessers, aka Plessers.

The Enchi is hot too!

I ADORE this girl. She is fantastic!!!

And her Sister

And the whole clutch.

And let us not forget the Pied clutch. Two Pieds out of Five. 1.1 and 1.2 hets. Not too shabby!

So it was a good weekend. Many more snakes hatched out, it was hot and beautiful, and time is ticking away for the show. Can't wait!

Friday, August 28, 2009

I was at a show a few years ago, and I was helping out a friend. He had some really killer pieds on the table, and I was standing behind the table where they were, kicking it, enjoying the view, enjoying the snakes and so forth.

So I was helping a customer, finished, and this huge burly guy with another slightly smaller but still burly guy come up to me. I ask them if I can help them, and they say that they are just looking. I said, well, if you want to see anything, let me know.

A few minutes goes by, and the bigger dude comes up to me and says "'Scuse me, but can I see that Peed in the box right there?"

I am taken aback.. Not really sure what he is trying to say.

I say "You want to see the what now?"

He looks at me seriously and says "the Peed" and points to the Pieds. His friend nods, and says "The Peed right there", pointing to a high white one.

I look back at them, my face aquiver, trying not to laugh, cause as I pointed out, this dude is a pretty big guy.

I say "No problem!!! But for the record, its pronounced 'Pie-D'" and get ready to move out of the swing of their arms lest he decide I was trying to offend him.

He looks at me curiously for a second, then starts bursting out laughing. He then explains that he only has seen them on the internet, and just assumed the pronounciation from that.

We both have a chuckle, and his friend thinks its the funniest thing ever. I take out the Pied, show them both, explain the basic genetics, and after the experience, they wistfully walk away, telling me they wished they could afford it.

There ends the story.

Anyway, the Pieds are hatching, and 3 out of the 5 eggs are empty. Looks like I got one male Pied, and two female hets. Alright!!

Here is the male. He's pretty low white, but to be honest, I love the orange on the sides, and I really do believe it makes for a prettier adult animal than those that have a whole section of white.

This male even has an orange tail tip! Yay Orange!! I should market him not as low white, but as high orange. Maybe that will get someone excited about it!

One more Pied in the egg, and one more Het, and then we wait for the other clutches to hatch.. Patience, Heather... Peeds are on the way!

Thursday, August 27, 2009

I really like Womas, but I hesitated in getting into them because, like the Spiders that I have, I hate SPOTS. Most people who produced Womas made them with spots on them. So I waited.. and waited to find the perfect Woma for me.

And I think I found her. And apparently, this female may be the NERD special gene Woma... Her father was, or something like that. If it does, then super extra awesome for me, but.. I like her as she is already. She has some really cool blushing on the sides in her black parts, and I am not even sure what to do with her, but maybe I could get her a date in a few years with the Pastel Yellowbelly? See what pops up, eh?

So yay for that!

And here is the last clutch to hatch recently, although we have pippings and sorts all over the place again, but here is the last complete clutch to hatch.

I bred a dark girl to the Sable and the Black Pastel. Seems the Sable had stronger stuff.

They looked very similar in the egg, but I got one Black Pastel and three Sables. Was fun watching them pop out and be like.. Ohhhhh! You were not what I thought you were.

Anyway, I'm off to do chores today, and to get things ready and set for the coming show in a week. I know I keep saying that, but hey... its a big deal!!!

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Well, yesterday, I had heard we were going to have a hot one here in Southern California. 90+ heat wave supposed to be rolling in.

Okay. Not my favorite, but hey.. it happens.

What I didn't realize was that there was a brush fire that was getting really large right across the mountains. A brush fire that was turning into a forest fire. Now here in So Cal, Fires happen often in this season. Its hot and dry, and people are crazy. I honestly don't know who started it (I think it was a campfire?), but I saw the aftermath, and felt the urge to take a picture.

It was rather eerie, actually.

I also couldn't breathe, but... thats a common occurance out here in Smog land.

You could see the smoke from a large distance. The sky was clear, and so it was very prominent in the sky. Kinda majestic in a wierd way.

So yeah, hope you enjoyed that. I thought it was interesting.

My friend Brian asked me about Chipo the other day, and asked me to do a blog about her. I thought, that is GENIUS!!! I haven't featured her in a long time. As my crowning achievement in breeding thus far, she should be put more at the forefront, I suppose.

She is doing well, now that she is around a year old. She is actually packing on the weight, and weighs around 700 grams. I am pleased! She should absolutely be ready to go in the 2011 season.

What do I plan to pair with her? I honestly am not sure. I have been thinking about it for a while, and I am still unsure about what to do. Was hoping to do something with a line of Het Red, but I'm not sure if I want to mess with that just yet. We will see... Suggestions, anyone?

Some people have asked if she has any problems. I have had none, although I think for her issues in the incubator, her head is missing those little fatty pockets right in front of the neck. Makes her head look thin. I thought that they may come back in time, but that is not the case, so her head is a tad bit "off".

And some have said she looks like a Pewter. Well... I have put her with my darkest pewter and as you can see, the comparison is just, but not really close when you talk about color.

And the obligatory belly shot.

I love this snake. Not because I am the first one to make it, but because I really love her colors. Dark snakes don't appeal to some, but she takes the cake in terms of just coolness in dark to me.

So there you go. Chipo in the flesh. Hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed taking the pics. I love this gal... Now just to figure out what to do with her..

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

I have been having some wierd pipping times for some of my clutches, and this one is no exception. This little boy Black Pastel emerged from the egg more than a week prior to his supposed pipping date. They were supposed to hatch at the beginning of next month! The rest of his siblings (Black Pastels and Sables and Normals) are all still in the egg, but all pipped!

I am assuming that because I am running my temps a tad bit hotter than last year, that the eggs have decided to mature faster. Its rather interesting, as this clutch wasn't supposed to be on the radar until the end of this week. I'm glad I checked in on them!

This is the last clutch that hatched, and it hatched on Sunday when I got back from Nor Cal. Seems that one of my poss het Albinos didn't prove out quite, but with two eggs, I can't really rule her out one way or the other. At least we got 1.1!

And of course, I love me some Enchi. This female is one of my hold backs from the past Enchi clutch. She doesn't look like much now, but she will grow into her colors, and really start popping!

Enchis tend to do that, and I find it to be really interesting. Most of the time the babies are the hotness, and the adults are not as great. This morph does the opposite! I will get some pics of my yearling Enchi holdback from last year to compare. Should be fun!

Anyway, things should be pipping and hatching very soon again in a large wave, as there are three clutches due on the same date. Proving out more poss hets here, my friends, so lets cross all our crossables that everything works well!!!

Monday, August 24, 2009

Well, got home last night from San Francisco, had a nice time with the family, and of course the first thing I did was check on the babies. Mister Bullet here is doing great!!

He is a tad bit small, and compared to his cohorts and siblings, he is the runt, but he is looking excellent, no flaws, no kinks, no problems other than being a tad bit shy.

He likes staying in a ball. I had to unfurl him for the photoshoot. His belly button has sealed up, and there is no visual indications of his endevour at all, other than being smaller than his siblings.

All of them are boys, although I lost a Pewter in the egg as well.. But Pastel male, Cinny male, and the Silver Bullet boy in the middle.

And also suprisingly, I got another clutch! A very nice sized one at 7 eggs, to a mystery father... Here begins the countdown all over again. My incubator is never going to turn off.

And so goes the season again. It will not end until November at this point. Should be interesting! I thought we were done, but there may be a few stragglers here and there.

Also getting very excited for NARBC Anahiem. Getting prepped up, as it is only two weeks away. ACK! Gotta get things rolling!

Should be a lot of fun, since I missed Daytona this past weekend. Ahh well. There is always next year.

Friday, August 21, 2009

Yesterday was windy, and I really didn't get the perfect pictures I would have wanted, but here is what I did get.

So stop and enjoy. :)

I've always enjoyed visiting my family up in northern California. Its much more relaxed than the Los Angeles area. Much more.. naturey. I know for those of you in the states that still have lots of open foliage, this may be boring, but this is a place that for me, I can actually still walk around and enjoy nature alone. There is very little of that where I live.

I remember when Peppermint Roses became main stream. I honestly find them not at the top of my rose color list, but they are very interesting to look at, and if the wind wasn't moving it around so much, I'm sure the photo would have been very nice.

And another rose... I love roses

And our state flower.. the California Golden Poppy :)

This is Mt. Tamalpais. I grew up here, in its shadows. Its a lovely mountain...

Birdies with a dirty lens..

More. This is a titmouse. It was sitting in a batting cage, and I was on the other side. I like how this photo turned out.

Mini rose. My mother used to have a bush of these in our old house in San Francisco. I remember that fondly. Heck, I think we sill have a bush at her now house..

I LOVE these colors. Reds, oranges and yellows are just my favorites.

The mountain again.. and the path.

Wild blackberries. I didn't try any, but they smelled good.

Another out of focus flower.

The wind was blowing, and the rustling made me want to take a picture. This one was the best one.

So this is obviously not snakey in the least, because I am not anywhere near them at the moment. BUT I would like to report that Mister Bullet is doing fine so far, and should make a full recovery.

Have a fantastic weekend, my friends. Enjoy your days. Maybe even stop and smell a flower or two before they are gone.